Moonrise
by SquawkingSquaw
Summary: Shimura Danzo hears whispers of a terrible threat encroaching on Konoha when she is at her most vulnerable, and becomes the Godaime to better protect her. But no man can control everything, and his 'protection' leads to world war and the bloodiest conflict in history; and Sakura, caught right in the middle, is forced to help him destroy everything she's ever loved.
Ten years before Haruno Sakura broke the world, Shimura Danzo was sworn in as the new Hokage of Konohagakure.

It was a grand affair, the likes of which the village had not seen for at least twenty years. The Daimyo, the most powerful man in the country, led the way, and brought his entire court with him; all of his advisors, all of his officials, all of his wives and concubines and consorts. Everyone who had some sort of ambition or thirst for political fame and power showed up, because the induction ceremony of a new kage was a very big deal indeed.

It was also a grand affair simply because the village was what it was. Konohagakure was the strongest village in the Elemental Nations, and had a long history of producing S-class ninja. S-class ninja were the strongest ninja of all, and that was because they were better at killing people than anyone else. It was very good business to have such powerful people on your side, doing your bidding, and so the festivities were prime opportunities to meet living legends in the flesh—and, perhaps, make connections at the same time.

"For Konohagakure alone understands the strength and value of freedom," the Daimyo was saying. His voice carried over a great courtyard overflowing with civilians and ninja, sweating together beneath the burning baleful glare of the midsummer sun. Behind him stood his wife, pale and serene and elegant, clad in a gold and crimson kimono that matched his own. She was the Lady Gou, mother of the Crown Prince. "It is this heroic confidence in our freedom that ensures the future, that protects and safeguards against chaos and anarchy, beyond all challenge or instigation. That is what makes us strong; what makes us unique; what grants us our strength. For we beyond all others truly comprehend that perpetual vigilance and preparation will forever trump what is fearfully calculated in the shadows of the night, by enemies too weak to face the burning light of the flame. And it is for you, Shimura Danzo, to take up this duty— it is for you to guide this village and this country to a new era of prosperity, as the newGodaime Hokage of Konoha!"

The crowd cheered and shouted. Haruno Sakura shouted, too. She was on the very edge of the crowd, and her voice wasn't very loud, because she was twelve years old. But she shouted just like everyone else, even though she had never heard of anyone named 'Shimura Danzo' before, or of a Konoha-nin so clearly crippled who was yet in service to his village. It was more the ceremony of the thing—it was her job to shout just then, and so she did.

Sakura, by the way, was D-ranked, which was the lowest rank a ninja could possibly be. It meant that she wasn't very good at killing. The ranks went: D, C, B, A, and S. Genin, her ninja 'class,' who were the weakest ninja in the village and also the most numerous, were, in general, all D-ranked.

But it didn't really matter to Sakura that she was on the lowest rung of the ladder, so to speak. Just being a ninja was the greatest thing of all.

And so even as she sweated and suffered under the burning midday sun, she still felt proud and important as she stood amongst the largest gathering of ninja she'd ever seen, as the new Godaime Hokage stepped up onto the platform to begin his initiation speech.

He stood slumped and crooked, like an invalid missing his IV pole. Or a scarecrow with a broken back. Bandages that looked grey and frayed even from a distance covered his right eye and messed up his hair, curving downwards until they were hidden from view by the long white sleeves of the Hokage ceremonial robe. Atop his head was a pointed white and red hat with a _five_ embroidered on it.

Beside her, Yamanaka Ino huffed as if in pain, but didn't say anything. Yamanaka Ino was a blond haired, blue eyed, and fashionable girl who was also not very good at killing people. She came from a very respectable ninja clan, however, and had the strange physical manifestations to prove it: her eyes were a solid, marked blue, and they didn't have any noticeable pupils in them. When they argued, Sakura called them freakish, and then Ino would insult the strange bright pink hue of her hair, but in reality Ino was attractive and unique in a way that made her instantly popular with most everyone.

Not Sakura, though. Sakura disliked Ino because they liked the same boy. They were rivals.

Beside Ino was the rest of her team: Nara Shikamaru, who also came from a respectable ninja clan, but didn't have any physical manifestations, and Akamichi Chouji, whose beefy exterior was a direct consequence of the enormous hereditary strength of his (also respectable) clan. Beside Sakura there was no one. Her team had tried to fight an S-class missing nin and were now laying comatose in Konoha hospital. Uchiha Sasuke, the boy she and Ino both liked, was one of the victims. Her sensei, Hatake Kakashi, was the other.

Her other teammate, Uzumaki Naruto, had left a week or so ago with Jiraiya of the Sannin—an S class ninja- to search for someone to not only heal their comrades but to also become the next Hokage. Sakura didn't know how that was going to play out, because the next Hokage was at least a minute into his speech already.

"As Konoha moves forward from this tragedy," he was saying, and his voice was low and gravely and rumbled like falling rocks. "We have to remember the tenets upon which this great village was will of fire- the tenacity of the burning flame. The struggle for survival and the will to live that burns the brighter when we unite as one; and most importantly—" and here his voice grew in cadence, and swelled with suddenly very real emotion—"the brilliant light of the torch, illuminating the dark path ahead—burning away the obscurity of the past and leading the way to a new world!"

His voice echoed through the courtyard and he paused. _Probably out of breath,_ Sakura thought unkindly, before berating herself. But she surely wasn't the only one— this Shimura Danzo hardly looked the part of Hokage. And she'd never even _heard_ of him. Weren't Hokages supposed to be world renowned? Outside the bandage industry, at least?

She kept her scorn to herself, though, and listened politely as the Hokage finished. He didn't speak long. After him was the daimyo again, but Sakura found herself paying more attention to the glittering gold of his crown rather than his speech. The Daimyo was, technically, their lord. Ninja owed their loyalty to their country—that was why they fought, after all. But most ninja paid little attention to the goings on of the Daimyo's court and cared little for the needs of the country. It was the village that they cared for most, what they were taught to care for in the Academy.

The swearing in ceremony ended and the ninja began to disperse in orderly waves. As one the end rows turned away and marched out of the courtyard and into the dusty streets of Konoha, precise and mechanical. The ceremony wasn't for the ninja, after all. Not really. This was all more for the Daimyo's court arrayed behind the Hokage on the platform, who looked on, sweating and uncomfortable. The new Hokage and his troops. It made for a nice picture.

Not that cameras were actually allowed here. But still.

Once they were off the courtyard and out of sight of the nobility, Ino fanned herself frantically. "That took _forever,"_ she groused. "Just how many ways can you say nothing? They talked for _two hours_ but could've wrapped everything up within five minutes. Ridiculous."

Chouji, looking rather sweaty and bothered himself, shrugged casually in response. "I thought it was fine. The Daimyo and the new Hokage really recognized the value of our service; most of the speech wasthem thanking us, after all. And they had a lot of nice things to say about the people who died during the invasion."

Just a few weeks ago, all the ninja villages had sent their young ninja to Konoha to be tested in the Chuunin Exams. There were a great many ninja villages, and they all had a history with one another, so theChuunin Exams weren't exactly peaceful to begin with. But things had quickly escalated out of control when Sunagakure and Otogakure had banded together and violated all the codes of polite society and murdered the Third Hokage.

It was a very bold move, and it hadn't worked. Konoha hadn't been destroyed; her ninja hadn't died. Sunagakure immediately surrendered, and the daimyo of Suna quickly looked for someone to blame so that he wouldn't have to face responsibility himself. And while there had been little news from Otogakure, it was said that their leader suffered from debilitating wounds.

So when Chouji said it was nice of the Daimyo —whose name was Lord Takahata— to recognize the honored dead, Sakura privately thought that it would have been better for the people in charge to prevent the invasion in the first place. But it wasn't really the time to bring it up, so instead she just said, "It's all ceremony anyway, right? They kind of have to spend their time talking a ton. But what I don't get— who is Shimura Danzo? I've never even heard of him."

Ino sent her a superior little smirk that immediately set her blood to boiling. "He's an elder," she said. "And if you'd kept your nose out of your books and actually paid attention then maybe you'd know that."

Shikamaru, who had quite a bit of experience with Ino's and Sakura's squabbles, cut in before she could snap back. "My dad sometimes complains about him—says he's the most stubborn member of the council, or something. When the Jounin and the Elders butt heads, its usually cause of him."

That made sense. And it made sense that she wouldn't know, too. Who was on the elder council wasn't often talked about in Academy, just because it was supposed to be common knowledge— but for Sakura, who grew up in a civilian household, the knowledge wasn't so commonplace. "Is he pretty strong, then?" Chouji asked, as they began making their way through the crowded streets. "Elders are elders for a reason… you'd think they would choose someone who was a bit younger."

Sakura nodded, the insult momentarily forgotten. "I mean, its not like they didn't have someone else in mind. That's why Naruto left—he was out looking for the next candidate."

"Maybe they didn't choose," said Ino. "The Daimyo got here pretty fast, don't you think? It's only been a few weeks. Maybe this was something else?"

Sakura didn't really know how fast daimyo were supposed to react when Hokage were replaced, but she had read that it had taken a month to reinstate the Third after the Kyuubi disaster. Based on that, two weeks really was sort of odd. But what could have inspired that sort of reaction? It wasn't like there was anything to worry about— Suna had already surrendered. When she said as much, Shikamaru shook his head.

"There's still Sound, right? Even if they aren't as strong as Suna, they are still a threat. They certainly haven't surrendered. And, on top of that, Konoha was attacked during the Chuunin Exams, when everyone is supposed to be at peace and equal with each other— everybody is on edge right now. Everybody is watching Konoha, and wondering what move we're going to make next."

"It makes sense, then, that they would nominate an elder," Sakura agreed. "If the political situation is so tense, he probably knows best how to diffuse it."

The thought was still a daunting one, however. War between the Elemental Countries was generally fought between the countries' ninja village. That was what they were made for, after all; ninja fought wars and battles and spied on people and tortured them and did all the terrible, immoral things that goes on in war so that the greater civilian population didn't have to. Ultimately, though, war meant that Sakura would actually have to go out and kill people, something she wasn't very good at. So she hoped, very hard, that the new Godaime knew what he was doing.

They continued along the main thoroughfare of Konoha, surrounded by ninja and civilians alike as they streamed through the restaurants and cafes and shops and markets hastily set up for the arrival of the Daimyo and his retinue. Everything here looked white-washed and polished and freshly painted—because it was; a lot of the rebuilding had been rushed here, where visitors first entered the village, and now the street positively gleamed. It hurt Sakura's eyes.

Chouji began very pointedly leading them towards a cozy outdoor barbeque set up on a street corner that, a month ago, had been a grocery store. "At least its over with," he said mildly. He did not feel very mild. He loved food with a burning passion and even the heat of the day could not put off his voracious appetite. "Are you coming to lunch with us, Sakura?"

Sakura blinked at him, touched, but Ino interrupted before she could accept. "Absolutely not! I've had my fill of you already. Just go home, Sakura."

"Or to the hospital," Sakura said loftily. "Maybe Sasuke-kun will wake up and then he'll see me and—"

"-And be scarred for the rest of his life," Ino said flatly, eyes narrowed. "You need to stop bothering him Sakura or he'll never wake up and it'll be all your fault."

"Who visited him three times in one day last week?" Sakura shot back. "Who sings songs to him—"

"I do not sing songs to him!" Ino turned as red as a cherry. "Who told you that? Never in my life would I—"

"—No one told me anything," replied Sakura triumphantly. "I saw you. Sitting on his bed. What was it, Ino? A lullaby?"

"I'll give you a lullaby." She pounced and Sakura ran, laughing, down the crowded street, Ino hot on her heels.

* * *

Construction on the Hokage mountain had already begun. In the summer twilight it was all angles and edges, the immortal faces upon it made cryptic and unknowable by long shadows cast by the setting sun. Carved in another age by people long past, weathered by the heat and ice and wind, they looked like the unwholesome gods of a pagan faith—and Kakashi, standing beneath, craning his head upwards, felt for all the world like a pilgrim seeking enlightenment.

In life, the Fourth Hokage had been a kind and gentle man, despite his chosen profession. He had always known what was wrong and what was right; always knew what lines to cross or to avoid. He had, by all accounts, been a hero. Not one made by circumstance, but one naturally born-someone who simply _knew_ what the best course of action was for everyone. Upon the Hokage monument, however, he was a man of secret and immeasurable knowledge, untouchable by the fond memories of Kakashi's early years.

If _he_ were here, he'd know what to do.

An unnatural wind gusted behind him, and he turned. White haired, but hardly old, Jiraiya the Toad Sage crouched on an enormous green-grey frog, its limbs fraught with spikes. The frog was a summon, which was a creature ninja called upon to help them kill people. Toads were not very efficient killers, but Jiraiya was such a powerful ninja that it really didn't matter.

Beside him stood Senju Tsunade, tall, buxom, and heartbreaking beautiful. She had twice the reputation as Jiraiya the Toad Sage, for she had saved hundreds of thousands of lives, even though she was a ninja. She had such a reputation that even though she had left the village in disgrace several years earlier, the village had nominated her as Hokage.

"You really shouldn't be up, Kakashi," she admonished, folding shapely arms over an equally shapely chest. "Just because I gave you a clean bill of health doesn't mean you can just waltz around picking fights with the new Hokage. Tsukiyomi isn't something to play around with."

He had just woken up earlier in the day, when Tsunade had been brought back to the village by Naruto to heal his teammates and to take up the mantle of Hokage. She had succeeded in one of those endeavors—he and Sasuke were perfectly recovered—but Shimura Danzo had been Hokage for almost four weeks by then.

"Eh, I'm doing alright," he replied, scratching his chin offhandedly. He really was. He felt fine; after all, Tsukiyomi, which was a very powerful genjutsu that tortured people for forty eight hours in a split second, didn't leave physical damage. "And Godaime-sama is capable of taking care of himself. He was the one who summoned me, actually." It was interesting that they knew about that, really. Even more interesting that they had decided to come see him afterwards.

"As long as you remember that," Jiraiya said flatly, uncharacteristically serious. "Danzo is someone who… does not take kindly to insubordination." Kakashi was very sure that Jiraiya meant something very different before he'd changed his wording. Someone who had forsaken his honor and dignity and humanity long ago, for example. Or maybe someone who justified the means with the ends, and did absolutely anything for the sake of victory, no matter what or who got in his way. The Sandaime was known as the God of Ninja for his sheer genius for the ninja arts; but in Konoha, among the people that really knew the village's business, he was known as a God for his role in quelling the equally legendary Shadow of the Ninja, Shimura Danzo.

For Danzo was no hero. His only redeeming quality was that his definition of victory was the improvement of Konoha. Everything he did—all the foulness, all the wrongness, all the terrible accumulation of power—was for the sake of a better Konoha. But his definition of 'better' and Kakashi's definition of 'better' were very different. And looking at Tsunade and Jiraiya, Kakashi had a feeling they were just as unhappy as he was.

"No need to tell me that," Kakashi replied with a put-on sigh. "I know just as well as anyone what he's been up to." Not that any one person knew of Danzo's plans; he was far too careful for that. Kakashi had an idea, though, and it wasn't a pleasant one.

Because everything was too neat. The Sandaime dying, the council supporting Danzo's appointment, the Daimyo sanctioning it; everything was running together far too smoothly. Danzo had been prepared, too prepared, for the aftermath of the invasion. "And he has been quite a bit busier than any of us expected, I see."

Tsunade shook her head. "This is terribly unlike him," she said pensively. "Its worrying. He is not the kind of person that would do something so open and obvious. Hokage is not a position for a ninja like him." Her amber eyes were piercing when they met his own. "We were wondering if he had… told you anything? About why he took power?"

"You don't know?" Kakashi asked, surprised. Jiraiya was the master of a spy network that spanned the entire breadth of the Elemental Nations, and Tsunade was, well, a genius in her own right. And they were both so highly respected that they were privy to all the village's secrets—or, at least, they were supposed to be. "He didn't say anything explicitly, but he did mention that he'd come across a terrible threat— something so incredibly dangerous that he needed the whole of Konoha prepared and ready as soon as possible."

Kakashi's role in that was to go back into the field as an ANBU. He'd denied him. His genin team were far more important, and he could 'prepare' them a lot better than Danzo ever could.

Jiraiya and Tsunade shared a look. "That's what he told us, too," Jiraiya replied. "That something terrible is coming, and he's the only one who can lead us to victory."

Kakashi frowned, puzzled. "But he didn't tell you what it was?" Jiraiya and Tsunade were the strongest ninja in the village, probably. To not tell them, of all people, what was coming…

"Not at all," Tsunade sighed out impatiently. "He said the time wasn't right—that we should just go along with his decisions for now, as loyal ninja of Konohagakure." Her expression was full of distaste. She shared his own disgust for Danzo's version of 'Konoha.'

"What will you do now?"

"That's what I came to talk to you about, actually." Jiraiya adjusted, sitting down on the frog's back and letting his legs dangle a foot off the ground. He came dangerously close to impaling himself on his toad's spikes, but he didn't seem to notice. "I'll be taking Naruto with me when I leave tomorrow." At Kakashi's obvious surprise, he added, "we'll be gone for about two years or so. Things are just a little too dangerous to let him stay here—the sooner we're out of here, the better."

Dangerous, because Danzo would take advantage of Naruto's power as soon as he possible could; he would not let Naruto live the easy life he had had under the Sandaime. He would use Naruto until he was a dried up husk of a ninja, bereft of will and pride and vigor, because Naruto was the jinchuuriki of the strongest demon there was: the Kyuubi. Being a jinchuuriki meant being a human vessel for a demon, and it was a very dangerous position to be in, because demons were hard to control and no one really trusted them, ever. It was also dangerous because there was a big group of S-class missing nin hunting them down, also trying to take advantage of that uncontrollable power. That was what had happened to Kakashi; he had picked a fight with one of them and gotten himself stuck in a coma for his effort.

"I'll be leaving, too," Tsunade said shortly. "Me and Shizune have got to do _something_ responsible while Jiraiya and the Uzumaki brat are out exploring the world's hot springs."

So they were both leaving. The village would be left in the hands of a tyrant, her strongest ninja elsewhere. Frustration welled up and Kakashi turned away, to gaze back up at the stern and unyielding profile of the Fourth Hokage. "There must be—"

Tsunade cut him off. "There's nothing. He has the daimyo, and the elders, and several other important subsections in the village. He's here to stay, and its best if we just do what we can to protect each other." She and Jiraiya shared a significant glance. "The _only_ thing we can do is look after one another. Your students especially. He'll be testing the Uchiha in particular, what with Orochimaru's interest in him."

"Looking after Sasuke isn't a problem." Kakashi sighed, watching the last remnants of the sunset paint the Hokage monument red. Danzo's visage, missing mouth and chin, glared out over the village with its one eye like the monstrous Cyclops of legend. "But there has to be something more that can be done. It's not just Sasuke that will need help, but everyone. Danzo will be looking everywhere for weaknesses…"Danzo's definition of ninja, like his definition of 'improving Konoha,' was very different from Kakashi's, or even the Sandaime's. One had to look no further than Root to see his embodiment of perfection. "It's a hefty responsibility, and I'm not the ninja you two are."

The Sannin shared a glance. "You already understand the village's situation," said Tsunade, not unkindly. "Right now we need someone like you, acting counterpoint to Danzo's excesses while we go out and try and uncover whatever it is that's so dangerous. Danzo wouldn't do something like this without tremendous incentive." There was a pause. Kakashi felt no need to fill it. "We'll be in touch."

He stayed there for a long, long time after they left, staring up at his old sensei's face.

* * *

Night had fallen hours ago, and Sakura had sat on the old wooden bench thinking ever since.

She could have been thinking of the fight between Naruto and Sasuke earlier that day, and of the terrible jutsu they had used against one another; or of the way Sasuke had looked, envious and enraged, whenNaruto had told him of his upcoming journey with a Sannin. She could have thought of the sudden way Naruto had left, walking out of her life like it was nothing, or of the dead way Sasuke sat on his hospital bed afterwards, filled with terrible intent. The truth was that she thought of all those things. But most importantly, she thought about exits.

There were many different ways to leave the village. There was the main gate, of course. It saw the largest influx of traffic, and was really the only road out of Konoha. Constantly busy with merchant caravans and travelers and civilians of various sorts, it could be a place of terrible traffic jams and gridlock, especially during festivals and events. Funerals, too—for the Sandaime's, the roads had been filled with visiting dignitaries from all over Fire Country. Everyone who mattered had been there.

But with the invasion, a lot of other possibilities had come forward. A ninja didn't need to go through the main gate to leave, anymore—most of the wall had been destroyed, and, even a month later, there were sections that hadn't been rebuilt all the way, or reinforced properly. There had been too much to do, and too many things that needed prioritizing, for the wall to be remade perfectly.

So Sakura sat on an old wooden bench on the northeastern side of Konohagakure, fidgeting with the hem of her shirt. And when she heard the sound of footsteps creeping down her little dark pathway, her chest got hard and heavy.

"Sakura." He was the most surprised she'd ever seen him, but it only meant that his eyebrows had risen and his eyes had widened. Still, it was the biggest impact she'd ever had on him and maybe in any other situation she would have warmed to see it. But not now. Not here.

"What are you doing here?" Even if he was shocked, his voice was still rough and unyielding. Sakura forced herself upright, until she stood before him. Behind her, the path continued almost forty feet to a section of broken wall that had hardly been touched up at all. It made sense; this was a quieter, more peaceful part of Konoha; there wasn't much anything of import here. It was likely that the guards would be less vigilant, if they came around at all. "Are you alone?" He asked, tensing when she didn't respond right away.

"Yes, yes—I'm alone," Sakura assured. "I'm here because..." How could she explain herself? What could she possibly say? "Why are you here, Sasuke?" She asked instead. If her voice shook a little, well, she couldn't really be blamed. When he didn't answer, she spoke in his stead.

"I love you." It burst out, uncontrollable and undeniable. And everything buzzed inside her, the very fiber of her being vibrated; she waited for his response, breathless. Sasuke's expression was…different. But that was good, because it wasn't the flat, angry, soulless look he'd had ever since he'd woken up. "But—even then, Sasuke, we're teammates. We've been through so much together… who cares about Narutogetting taught by Jiraiya of the Sannin?" She searched his eyes desperately, taking an earnest step forward. "Sasuke, it doesn't matter. You saw him—he's got a big title but he's just a goofball. Him and Narutodeserve each other.

"But we're still here—Kakashi-sensei and me. I'm still here. If you'd only let me—" her voice really broke, then, and she took a ragged breath. Despite herself, there was wetness on her cheeks. When she looked up, they were only three feet apart, and she realized that Sasuke hadn't been standing right the whole time she'd been talking.

"Sasuke! You—you're injured!" She rushed to his side. Sasuke pushed her hands away, and they came back red.

"Just a training accident," he said flatly. It hadn't been a training accident. Ninja from Otogakure—Orochimaru's village—had come looking for him, because Orochimaru wanted to use his body to achieve immortality. Sasuke was going to let him, at least for a little while, because he needed to be stronger more than anything. His brother was an absolute madman who had murdered their entire family andSasuke was going to pay him back tenfold. Actually, his brother, whose name was Uchiha Itachi, was the one who had put Kakashi in the hospital. "Sakura, look. I don't know how you knew I would be here, but this isn't about you. And it's not about Naruto, either. I'm doing this for myself."

"Training accident? With what? Ten ninja at once?" Her voice kept going higher and higher and she couldn't really stop it. "Betraying the village doesn't get you power, Sasuke!" Her breath shuddered in her chest like a living thing and she choked and struggled with it and failed. "It just gets you dead!"

"Sakura…"

"Take me with you," she whispered, grasping for his arm desperately. He pulled away stiffly. "I'll come with you—you don't have to be alone, Sasuke. You don't have to do this. Hunting your brother down? I'llhelp, we'll _all_ help, if only you'd let us! Just—just—" she subsided into silence and looked at him helplessly. What could she say, what could she do that would convince him, that would get through to him? _Just stay with me._

But Sasuke's expression had hardened again and when he gazed back at her it was with unpitying eyes. "You aren't coming with."

It wasn't that he didn't respect her, because he did. And it wasn't that he didn't like her… because he did. Vengeance, however, was far more important. Itachi had to be stopped.

Tears dripped down her chin and she rubbed at her face in a useless attempt to regain some form of dignity. Sasuke stepped around her and she watched him, immobile. Even after all they'd been through—all those missions, all those enemies, fighting for each other, saving each other—did it just mean nothing to him? How could he be so heartless?! nothing compared to the sheer hopelessness that was turning her insides to stone.

"I—I'll scream," she said brokenly, and it worked. Sasuke stopped, turned back to her. She could hardly see him for the tears.

And then everything went blessedly black and she didn't feel a thing.

* * *

It was daytime, this time, and the hot summer day baked the wind to a dusty swirl that climbed through the window and tugged at his hair with fingers of hot air. Kakashi tried again. "Sasuke is a skilled ninja, and a loyal one. His… foray with the Sound ninja—" he would not call it betrayal; calling it betrayal would get Sasuke killed— "was a fluke. He seeks the power to kill his missing-nin brother. He is absolutely loyal to Konoha, but at the same time is simply more… motivated than others."

Hours ago, Sasuke had been dragged—subtly, of course-into the village by Danzo's ninja. By Root. He had left, Kakashi had been told, with four ninja of Orochimaru's Hidden Village of Sound. He had left, with the intention of staying gone. They hadn't made it more than three miles before they were intercepted and captured by Danzo's best.

Danzo had been watching. Waiting. He had known that Sasuke would betray Konoha and turn to Orochimaru. He had known and let Sasuke act anyway. Had given him just enough rope to hang himself. Kakashi frowned, the expression hidden by his mask. But Danzo wouldn't kill him—Sasuke was too valuable. The Sharingan was too valuable. He had something else in mind and, eying the too-stiff ninja at Danzo's side, Kakashi had a sinking feeling that he knew just what Danzo sought to do. And he had to prevent it, no matter what, because beyond all else Sasuke was his student and didn't deserve a fate like that.

Whether Sasuke knew it or not, Kakashi was the only barrier between him and Danzo's unique brand of brainwashing.

The old ninja stood and moved towards the window, slamming it shut. The wind, cut from the source, died slowly, settling its dusty remains in Kakashi's clothes and feet. "Sasuke's motivation drove him to betray the very village who raised him," Danzo rasped, his voice low. He sounded like a very old man; Kakashi was not fooled. "By all rights he should be killed."

"But you won't," Kakashi said. When Danzo turned around to face him, his one good eye narrowed at the insubordination, he continued. This was just posturing; Danzo was stringing him along, manipulating him. He had to do something to regain control of the situation, or else Sasuke really would fall into his clutches. And Sasuke, for all his faults, was just a kid. He was allowed to make mistakes. Abandoning the village was a pretty big mistake, but if Kakashi wouldn't forgive him, he'd be left in the clutches of someone almost as terrible as Orochimaru. "This village needs Sasuke. He messed up, but he's young. He deserves a second chance."

"Ninja do not get second chances," Danzo said lowly. From any other person, it would have sounded like a growl. "It is a fact of our profession. A fact that Hiruzen failed to understand, and ultimately died from. His soft nature contributed to this mess we are in today," Danzo returned to his desk and sat down. "A soft nature that you have inherited, Hatake." He paused, as if to give him a chance speak. Kakashi wisely kept his silence. "But I will give him his second chance."

Kakashi looked up from the ground, meeting Danzo's eye with his own. That had been too easy. "I need good ninja, Hatake," Danzo continued, resting his good arm on his desk. "I need good, loyal soldiers who are experienced and skilled. This village needs good, loyal soldiers. Putting you with a genin team is a waste of talent, and there is no need for you to do so anymore, with the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki under Jiraiya's care. No, you are better suited elsewhere."

"You want me to return to ANBU."

Kakashi made it more a statement than a question. Danzo answered anyway. "Yes. And no. I want you to join my elite ANBU force, which will unite with Konoha's current ANBU force."

"And Sasuke?"

"The Uchiha will also join my ANBU." Danzo leaned back, his one eye sharp and piercing. "Under your wing, if you so wish."

A sick feeling twisted in his gut. It was a very good arrangement.

If Kakashi joined Root, Danzo would be able to consolidate his power with the other Jounin, the one group that Danzo hadn't fully won over yet. If Sasuke joined Root, then Danzo would be able to oversee his training and personally mold him as he saw fit. But both Kakashi and Sasuke would lose all sense of freedom, tied down by Danzo's implacable will and the utter obedience demanded by Konoha's covert ops.

The first time Danzo had offered him membership in Root, after he had turned fourteen and ended up the last surviving member of his genin team, Kakashi had shot him down without a thought. Now, though, it wasn't just his own life in the balance. If he didn't accept, he didn't doubt that he would be cut off from his student completely, and Sasuke would be left with absolutely no one. But Sasuke wouldn't simply become Danzo's obedient tool. It was much more likely that he would lose all faith in Konoha and betray it for real, or anger Danzo irrevocably. Danzo was very good at ordering tools, but people were a different story.

There was hope, though. Perhaps there was yet a way he could salvage this. "Team seven is more than just Naruto and Sasuke, though," he tried. "Haruno Sakura deserves to have at least some sort of team assignment. To break up the team would be unfair to her." As soon as he said it, he knew he'd made a mistake. Danzo didn't care about fairness. "—would be detrimental to her success," he amended.

"I've read her file," Danzo said with a dismissive wave of his good hand. "She is hardly more than an academy student."

Kakashi gritted his teeth behind his mask, shocked despite himself. "That is not true—Sakura is a very good ninja. In her missions she is unfailingly professional towards our clients, and she was the number one kunoichi in her academy class. Compared to Naruto or Sasuke, she is far more stable mentally and has a far greater understanding of chakra and the greater world."

"Referring to her chakra control?" When Kakashi nodded and moved to explain, Danzo cut him off. "It is easy to control chakra when there is almost none there to begin with. Compared to her two teammates—and to the majority of her peers—the Haruno girl has nearly zero potential. Her high scores are because she's an academic, Hatake. Hardly ninja material. She comes from a civilian family, after all." His one eye closed, as if in exasperation. "How Hiruzen let the Academy curriculum fall so low I will never understand."

"She's clever," Kakashi argued, legitimately angry. Power wasn't everything—despite her lack of physical strength, Sakura had heart; she had will—exactly the sort of will the Third had been looking for in his academy students. She had a mental fortitude that would take her farther than mere power ever could. Kakashi tried a different route. "She scored so well because she has an analytical mind."

"A mind that has been occupied with what, exactly? If she had applied herself, we would be having a different conversation right now. But as it stands she hasn't a fifth of the motivation, the drive, of theUchiha, and none of the Jinchuuriki's strength." Danzo leaned forward, his one arm resting against the desk. "The world isn't the kind, gentle place Hiruzen was so convinced it was, Hatake. I'm doing the girl a favor—I'm doing _you_ a favor— when I say that she does not deserve to be a ninja. To put her out in the field would be to kill her." Danzo nodded, leaned back. "Team seven will be disbanded. Sasuke will go to Root, with you, and the girl will be dismissed."

Helpless rage burned in his throat. Surely there had to be something else he could do. Some card he hadn't played yet. _I'll be good._ Surely there were other options. Surely there was another way to keep his team together.

But there wasn't. Danzo was Hokage, and the Hokage, by definition, held all the cards. "Give Sakura a chance," he finally said, defeated. Sakura did not deserve to simply be let go. She was worth more than that. "She will surprise you, if you'd only let her."

"Your sentiment blinds you, Hatake," Danzo said, motioning him to stand. "But we will see."

* * *

It was a combination of childish innocence and righteous indignation that doomed Sakura in the end.

She had always been emotional—sensitive, her parents said kindly. Years in the academy had only taught her how to hide her most violent reactions and even then she wore most of her emotions on her sleeve. Her failed and humiliating effort to stop Sasuke from leaving the village was only the most recent manifestation of her lack of control.

But in the day to day interactions of Team Seven, her eccentricities paled in comparison to Naruto's, who was infamous throughout the entire village for being a loud-mouthed brat with a penchant for rebellion, and even to Sasuke's, whose abrupt and generally uncouth attitude had rebuffed most everyone he came in contact with. In comparison, she was ordinary.

But ordinariness was no virtue to Shimura Danzo, the new Godaime Hokage, and, bursting into his office without her teammates by her side, Haruno Sakura was in a situation and she had no idea just how very bad it was.

Sakura stood at attention in front of the Hokage's desk, her heart thudding with a hundred thousand different emotions. Terror, for one—she'd never met the new Hokage in person, and none of her fellowgenin had, either. He was a complete unknown and here she was, barging in the moment she'd woken up on the wooden bench. Fiery courage, for another—Sasuke needed help. Desperately. She couldn't just abandon him, not even after he'd stomped on her heart and tried abandoning everything they'd ever fought for.

The Godaime, meanwhile, had decided with some finality just what he was going to do with Sakura.

"Who is this?"

A ninja standing behind him answered, all in black and masked in white ceramic. Sakura jumped; she hadn't noticed him. He was standing _right there_ in the light of the early morning sun and she hadn't even seen him. "Haruno Sakura, Hatake Kakashi's student."

The Hokage's gaze was unrelenting. Sakura stood there, struggling for words. In person, he was so much more _intense_. The Sandaime had been elderly and cheerful; when he visited the Academy or talked with team seven, he was always good natured and relaxed. If she had come to him for help, he probably would have listened.

"Speak, girl." His voice was rough and low; his face, inscrutable. "Explain yourself." He hadn't moved at all from the moment she'd burst in uninvited.

Belatedly, she regained her voice. Now, though, she wasn't sure if she really wanted to speak. "I came about—about Sasuke," she replied in a very small voice. She gripped her elbow with a tight/tense hand until it hurt. "He's not a traitor."

The Hokage's expression didn't change. "You have new information about Uchiha Sasuke's betrayal? About the Sound ninja that tried to help him leave, perhaps?"

"Well, no, but—"

"If you have nothing to add to the investigation, then leave," the Hokage said flatly. Sakura gripped her elbow tighter, feeling the joint creak in protest. "You are wasting my time."

"Wait!" She plowed forward, desperate. "Sasuke isn't a traitor! Just because he tried to leave the village, doesn't mean he's not loyal!" She straightened, conviction returning. She couldn't just let him dismiss her like that—she wouldn't! She had spent far too long being helpless and useless—she wouldn't give in just like that. "Sasuke is confused—he's not in his right mind. Orochimaru put a seal on his neck and it makes him act strange! He's not himself and to judge him solely on this one mistake would be a terrible injustice." She inhaled shakily. "Please, Hokage-sama—give him another chance."

The Hokage stared at her, unmoved. He might as well have been made of stone. It was the ninja behind him, voice robotic and strange, who spoke instead. "You have been dismissed, Haruno-san."

At twelve years old, it was expected for Sakura to misread situations. And it was also to be expected for her to react badly to them. She blinked, uncomprehending. Her feet remained rooted stubbornly to the floor, until the Hokage gave a very forceful sigh.

"Your sensei has been here already," he said shortly. "Pleading for leniency. I accepted. The Uchiha will operate under my direct supervision, and under your sensei's direct supervision, as a member of my elite force."

Sakura hung on his every word, barely daring to breathe. But the Hokage was not finished. "The remaining problem is you. With your team members occupied with more important business, the only remaining member of Team Seven is you. Where to put you, what to do with you… perhaps it is more fitting to decide that now, than to wait any longer."

Remaining member of Team Seven? What nonsense was that? Teams didn't disband just like that. "But Sasuke's going to be alright?" She interjected as smoothly as she could. It still came through as a blatant interruption, but as long as Sasuke was really okay, she didn't mind. "You aren't going to… punish him?"

Because it didn't sound like any punishment she'd ever heard of. Leaving the village meant getting killed or maimed or taken off active duty forever. Kakashi-sensei had made a really good deal if supervision was the only thing Sasuke had to worry about.

But the Hokage continued as if she hadn't spoken. "Your sensei went to great lengths to recommend you. After listening to him, reading your file, and seeing your behavior today and last night, I can very comfortably announce that Konohagakure has no need for your services." The Godaime glanced back down at the papers at his desk, began to read them once more. "You may turn in your headband to the desk downstairs."

The Hokage's office was silent. Sakura gaped. "What—" she tried. "I don't—"

The Godaime looked back up at her and the absolute lack of emotion made her stumble back. He might as well have been made of stone for all the humanity she saw there. "Did you think that I would not hear of your rendezvous with Uchiha Sasuke?" He asked rhetorically, and his voice had no inflection, no feeling. "That my ninja would not hear what you discussed? We know, Haruno. How you tried to leave the village with the Uchiha. How you tried to betray Konohagakure and only remained because you are such a pathetic disgrace to our profession that even the Uchiha did not want you."

She couldn't breathe. Horror left her breathless. But the Godaime didn't stop. His expression had changed and he was looking at her like she was nothing. Like she was trash the janitor had forgotten to clean up and now it was suddenly his responsibility to take care of her. "Konohagakure has no need for someone like you."

"But—but—I didn't abandon the village," she cried. Her eyes were starting to water and it took everything to keep the tears from falling. "Sasuke—" She could hardly think, let alone speak. "I just wanted to be a good teammate." Her voice broke. _I just wanted him to love me._

"A ninja's first loyalty is to the village." The Hokage's eye was narrowed and Sakura gripped both her elbows, realizing she was silently gasping for air like she'd been running for her life. "Not their love life." Sakura winced, looked away. "You have demonstrated that you cannot be trusted to act for the village's sake," he said with terrible finality. "As such, you are not worth the headband you wear." She couldn't breathe, she couldn't see, there were too many tears and _what can I say what can I do_ _Sasuke_ _,_ _Naruto_ _,_ _Kakashi_ _-sensei-_

"And now it is time for you to leave. Be thankful that I did not have you killed."

Sakura reeled. She fell to her knees. Wanted to throw up, but didn't, because the now was too important. The Hokage wasn't looking at her anymore, and the ninja all in black was walking around to pick her up, throw her out—

"Please, Hokage-sama," she begged. She bowed her head to the floor and got dust in her hair but it didn't matter not at all. "Give me another chance." Her voice broke and she had to repeat herself to get the words out. The ninja's steps kept getting closer and closer— she didn't have enough time—"I made a mistake—I thought I could keep Sasuke from betraying the village, but in doing so abandoned my honor as a ninja of Konohagakure. Please— forgive my transgressions, forgive my impudence, and allow me the chance to prove myself." The footsteps stopped, a foot away. On purpose? On orders? She kept her head down, tried to press herself further against the ground. "Please allow me the chance to regain my honor, Hokage-sama."

There was silence. Sakura remained frozen, scarcely daring to breathe. The Hokage's aide hadn't gotten any closer, but no one had said anything, either. Should she keep talking? Should she stay silent? He was a hard man; everything about him screamed ninja. He seemed to prefer order and discipline to everything else; was staying quiet the better option? But had she managed to convince him?

In agony, she remained still.

And the Hokage spoke. "There is something you can do."

She very carefully did not look up.

"Stand."

Sakura stood and it took everything to keep from falling. The Hokage's expression hadn't changed, he hadn't moved; Sakura met his eyes as straight as she could. _I'm serious_ _,_ she tried to convey. _I'm determined. I'll do anything._ And when she received her new mission, it was with a heart that scarcely dared to hope. This was her chance.

Because _everything_ rode on this.

* * *

Did everything work together well? What did you think of Danzo?


End file.
